Here are the 10 most important stories about bitcoin and cryptocurrencies today

1. Bitcoin has started off the second half of 2018 with a bang. The cryptocurrency has bounced back more than 12 percent from its lows last week, surpassing $6,600 per coin. Bitcoin fell below $5,800 per coin last week, its lowest total of 2018. The cryptocurrency has struggled from a lack of enthusiasm, and prices have dropped more than 50 percent since January. -CNBC

2. The bitcoin community buzzed this past weekend after the South Africa-version of Fast Company released a cover highlighting two “Bitcoin Kings.” The problem is no one in the mainstream cryptocurrency community had any idea who they were. Jokes, of course, followed on social media about the legitimacy of these mystery men. It turns out the two men are JT Foxx and Mao Lai, the head of a company called CryptoGold. The company mines cryptocurrency, and recently launched a gold-back crypto coin dubbed CryptoGoldCoin. Of course, that doesn’t end the story. On the magazine’s cover, the two are holding a mining device exclusively used to mine the cryptocurrency Sia – not bitcoin – an odd choice for the “Bitcoin Kings.” -COINDESK

3. A cryptic message posted on a website Friday has some believing Satoshi Nakamoto may be writing a book. The message, which appeared on a site “possibly linked” to Nakamoto, outlines the “first excerpt” of a two-part literary work that promises to be “a short story if you will, with some of the most brought up questions and answers. I wanted the people and the facts to be known.” The excerpt also includes a cryptogram, which claims to reveal names related to the title of the book. In its reporting, Bloomberg News could not independently verify the authenticity of the post or the excerpt. -FORTUNE

4. Bitcoin Futures do not carry enough weight to affect the price of bitcoin, an analyst recently said. There have been some comparisons of late that show the price of bitcoin dropping in the final few days before futures contracts expire, but Mati Greenspan, a senior market analyst from eToro, said the contracts do not create enough volume to have that kind of effect. Greenspan said that last Monday about $142 million in bitcoin futures contracts were traded, making up only 4 percent of the volume for that day. –CRYPTO BRIEFING

5. The developers behind CryptoKitties has debuted a number of new initiatives aimed at further decentralizing the popular ethereum game. Most notably, the developers will make the game’s API open source along with the smart contracts it uses for gameplay. The goal is to help improve the supporting features in the KittyVerse (yes, that’s a thing) that includes fighting games, races, and additional accessories. -COINDESK

6. A new piece of malware is targeting bitcoin users. The virus gains control of Windows clipboard to swap out addresses. The program is already monitoring 2.3 million targets. Unless a user double-checks the pasted address, they will have no idea that this swap took place. –COIN TELEGRAPH

7. BitMEX CEO Arthur Hayes said bitcoin could crash as low as $3,000. There is not all bad news, though, as Hayes believes the coin could still reach $50,000 by the end of the year. -CRYPTOSLATE

8. Heavy rains in the Sichuan province of China may have wiped out a bitcoin mining facility. The bitcoin hashrate temporarily dropped for about 24 hours, but those types of drops are normal and may not be related to the loss of mining power. -CCN

9. The Tezos Foundation announced that the blockchain’s beta net is live. The foundation noted that will there is a fully functioning version of the network available it is still experimental in nature. -COINDESK

10. Gaus Trade, a blockchain-based vehicle marketplace, is offering huge discounts of vehicles. The company uses blockchain to allow customers to buy directly from manufacturers, avoiding the price markups of dealers and other intermediaries. -BITCOINIST

5. The developers behind CryptoKitties has debuted a number of new initiatives aimed at further decentralizing the popular ethereum game. Most notably, the developers will make the game’s API open source along with the smart contracts it uses for gameplay. The goal is to help improve the supporting features in the KittyVerse (yes, that’s a thing) that includes fighting games, races, and additional accessories. -COINDESK

Inside Bitcoin

Tracking trends, news, and analysis around Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies